What tube amplifier to buy? Part I: Single Ended

Admission

For me, tube amplifiers are the most fascinating topic in the world of hi-fi and hi-end.The differences between the Push-Pull and Single-Ended tube amplifiers are key to shaping the sound and character of the sound.

Today I will not focus too much on technicalities, because from the point of view of me and most music lovers, these aspects are of little importance. I will focus more on what is important to me – on the sound, in what music and why this type of sound can work.

I warn you that this is not a text for advanced lanterns, but rather people who have been thinking more or less boldly about this type of amplifier for some time.

What influences the sound of the SE tube amplifier?

Of course, the sound of such a device consists of many different elements, such as:

• topology
• accident
• resistors
• capacitors
• lamp type
• Lamp brand
• Construction (type of housing, printed circuits, internal cabling, etc.)

However, these are details of interest mainly to technical people, most of them as amateurs will not be able to check and it is difficult to be interested in it at the beginning, so that our head does not explode with too much information.

Certain sound features of the SE structure are common independent of these aspects.

The characteristics may, of course, vary depending on the topology or the elements used, but usually these are only other components of the path to the end result.

The sound characteristics of the SE tube amplifier

I was in possession of dozens of single-ended tube amplifiers: branded (e.g. Sun Audio, Line Magnetic, Fezz Audio, Haiku, Unison, Phast), DIY, Triodes 2A3, 300B, 845, 211, on the devil, as well as on the pentodes 6550, KT88, EL84 and I think that some features are so repetitive that they can be written down under the Let’s Call It Guide.

1. Single-ended tube amplifier is the vast majority of the gamevery linear, thin line, so they clearly draw the contours of the instruments or the location of the vocals on the stage.
2. This type of amplifiers are characterized byOutstanding diameter, fantastic reproduction of the colors of instruments, textures, virtually inaccessible to even very expensive transistors.
3. They are a great choice for quiet and moderately loud listening sessions, because we have a good tonal balance from the very beginning of the potentiometer.
4. They perfectly reproduce women’s and men’s vocals, have a lot of flavors, clumps and emotions.
5. They have a lot of detail, but it is usually a detail in color and emotions than strictly in the amount of information in the recording (although it depends largely on the class of the device).
6. They create a precise scene with good proportions of the size of the instruments and the location of apparent sources.

So who is the Single Ended tube amplifier for?

• For a person who listens rather quietly / moderately loud
• For a person who prefers jazz, acoustics, vocals, slower music and looking for relaxation
• to smaller rooms, or those in which the loudspeakers are relatively close to the listener
• For the person who gets Ciarek from the playing climate, and not from the impact of energy from the loudspeakers

Of course, I have committed a few generalizations and simplifications here. Good amplifiers, or those based on stronger triodes such as 211, 845 or 805, will also be great in stronger music, but this is a topic for the next post.

Who should let go of the Single Ended amplifiers?

• Fans of strong, loud playing
• Rock and metal fans
• Owners of large rooms (above 30 sq m)
• Fans of very precise bass and macrodynamics
• Owners of small, power-hungry speakers with small drivers

Should the tube amplifiers be abandoned in the above case? Absolutely not. The 805 lamp, possibly 845, 211, and above all, push-pull structures will be the perfect choice here.